This thesis examines the impact of cultural values directly on employee motivation and indirectly via leadership style. The study identifies distinguishing features of cultural values, leadership styles and employee motivation in Cameroon. The research investigates the perceptions of these concepts by managers and employees and the distinctive influence of the traditional Cameroonian values as compared to the Western values contained in the discourse of authors such as Hofstede, Likert, Maslow and Herzberg and students of their work. Field work includes questionnaires and interviews designed to elicit perceptions of the three concepts from the sample; the distinctiveness of perceptions as compared to Western discourse. Focus groups were incorporated into the research design and used to evaluate and modify hypotheses resulting from the fieldwork. The conceptual model designed for the research is based on literature and consultations. The study used both quantitative questionnaire survey and qualitative in depth interviews to collect data. 135 employees and managers from 10 SMEs of the banking and telecommunication industries in the private sector participated in the survey. 10 of them were interviewed, 4 leaders and 6 followers. Seven hypotheses are developed and tested against their validity in Cameroon in relation to the literature. The results indicate that the main hypotheses developed based on the three strands of literature used in the study proved to be robust, but some different important details were also found out. For example, Hofstede's (1991) masculinity index for the West African region was 46. There are also some distinctions with respect to leadership style and employee motivation. The study indicates that the perceived leadership style in organisations in Cameroon is paternalistic, that extrinsic motivational factors aremore important to Cameroonian employees than intrinsic factors. The study also discovered some African cultural values and leadership practices that constrain employee motivation and consequently organisational performance. It has been found out that employees in Cameroon's organisations will perform better in conditions where organisational values such as cooperation, participation, specification of targets and performance measure are of paramount importance especially if the leadership dimensions are those that encourage motivation and interaction. Direct and indirect links appear to exist.

Power is an essential attribute of all social systems. Nonetheless, the study of this topic has been greatly overlooked in the context of the maritime component of international supply chain management. This study aims to contribute to addressing this shortfall by examining how the concept of power can be understood between two key maritime actors – the port/terminal operator and the liner shipping company. Four specific research topics have been created based on the key dimensions of the concept of power: power source, power pattern, power strategy, and power exercise. These topics relate, respectively, to the origin of power, the balance/imbalance of power, strategies to improve power, and the use of power. Investigation into the vested power issues relies on the dependence discourse and power-bases discourse of the concept of power. These have been analysed through the lenses of Resource Dependence Theory (RDT) and Social Exchange Theory (SET). Four Chinese hub seaports are used as the setting for this study (i.e. Xiamen Port, Shanghai Port, Qingdao Port and Ningbo Port). A qualitative case study strategy is deployed using data gathered mainly from 39 semi-structured interviews with leading players from both groups of maritime actors. The data were analysed using template analysis. Research findings reveal that case port/terminal operators implement a number of tactics to improve power in relation to liners. The sources of these two maritime actors’ power are identified at three levels: organisational, dyadic relationship, and supply chain network. Whereas case port/terminal operators and liner operators are found to be highly interdependent, the former party generally takes a more powerful position. Under this power pattern, the port terminal operators have used their reward power, legitimate power and coercive power to exercise control in the dyad. This study is the first to systematically investigate power issues in the maritime industry. The research centres on the Chinese hub seaports incorporating port governance and guanxi contextual issues. It extends the understanding of the concept of power and contributes to the knowledge of port/terminal operators’ business practices and relationships with liners. The overall outcome of this study is the creation of a theoretical framework to understand the basic functioning mechanisms of inter-organisational power. This study validates the RDT approach to examine power strategies in the inter-organisational dyads exploring the patterns and sources of power involved. It also contributes to SET by investigating the explanatory power of this theory for the patterns of power exercise.

This dissertation is rooted in market for technologies theory and organizational economics to answer to a call for additional research on the processes and organizational mechanisms through which firms implement their patent strategies. The first chapter investigates the organizational configurations that lead to success in granting a patent and capture value from innovation. Using a fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fs/QCA) of 20 firms, the chapter explores the role of different combinations of centralization of decision-making, cross-functional involvement, and codification of information on the timely ability to secure protection to an invention through patent grant. The second chapter provides a micro analysis of the overall management of the technology licensing process. Using multiple case studies, the research found two configurations to organise the capabilities and governance of decision making in technology licensing. In the first configuration, the management of licensing is based on a combination of internal flow of information, stand-alone coordination mechanisms and inside-out negotiating capabilities, which are the capabilities to convince external partners of the validity of the technology. In the second configuration, licensing is orchestrated through an external flow of information, shared coordination mechanisms and outside-in negotiating capabilities, which are the capabilities to convince members of the same organization of the validity of the license agreement and to moderate the various internal debates related to the agreement. The last chapter examines the role of indemnification clauses on intellectual property (IP) rights in the case of licensing deals and discusses the implications for the optimal design of licensing contracts. The study proposes that indemnification clauses on intellectual property rights operate as signals to share the risk and reduce moral hazard in licensing contracts. Building on market for technology literature and contract theory, the research found that the inclusion of IP indemnification clauses in technology licensing is correlated with a higher likelihood of selecting a payment schemes based on a combination of lump sum and royalty rate. Furthermore, the effect is amplified when the licensee and licensor operate in distant technological domains.

This thesis describes the role of mathematical modelling in the evaluation of an innovative automated system of wearable and environmental sensors to monitor the activity patterns of patients with Bipolar Disorder (BD). BD is a chronic and recurrent mental disorder associated with severe episodes of mania and depression, interspersed with periods of remission. Early detection of transitions between the normal, manic and depressed stages is crucial for effective self-management and treatment. Personalised Ambient Monitoring (PAM) is an EPSRC-funded multidisciplinary project involving biomedical engineers, computer scientists and operational researchers. The broad aim of PAM is to build and test a network of sensors (chosen by the patient) to collect and analyse daily activity data in order to identify an ‘activity signature’ for that individual in various health states. The hypothesis is that small but potentially significant changes in this activity pattern can then be automatically detected and the patient alerted, enabling him/her to take appropriate action. The research presented in this thesis involves the development and use of a Monte Carlo simulation model to evaluate the potential of PAM without the need for a costly and time-consuming clinical trial. A unique and novel disease state transition model for bipolar disorder is developed, using data from the clinical literature. This model is then used stochastically to test many different scenarios, for example the removal or technical failure of a sensor, or the limited availability of various types of data, for various simulated patient types and a wide range of assumptions and conditions. The feasibility of obtaining sufficient information to derive clinically useful information from a limited set of sensors is analysed statistically. The minimum best set of sensors suitable to detect both aspects of the disorder is identified, and the performance of the PAM system evaluated for a range of personalised choices of sensors

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The UAE government’s vision is to provide excellent services to UAE citizens and residents. Accordingly, its strategy stresses the need to increase the efficiency of governmental bodies and upgrade their level of service based on customer needs. In order to do this, the government plans to develop, build and implement appropriate PMSs and attain a better understanding of the critical success factors (CSFs) for their effective implementation, in order to optimise resources and efficiency. Owing to the lack of literature on performance management in the UAE, the literature relating to developing countries is here used as a proxy. The literature review produced a list of the common CSFs that may have a major impact on PMS implementation success. The present study attempts to deal with the various challenges identified in the literature and to make a contribution in a number of areas. This study undertook research on government organisations in UAE, with a view to identifying the most important CSFs that support the successful implementation of PMSs. The remit of the research was narrowed to an attempt to understand the causes of PMS failure and to avoid possible obstacles in implementing PMSs. However, the study was not limited to the identification of such CSFs, but also examined their relevance and criticality. Qualitative research took the form of case studies, involving interviews, observations and document reviews. This study makes several contributions to the literature on CSFs that influence successful PMS implementation in the government sector, principally in UAE and other developing countries, by identifying which CSFs should be considered in pursuit of successful PMS implementation and evaluating the impact of CSFs and the complex relationship between them and the implementation of PMSs. This study further presents a theoretical model for CSFs for successful implementation of PMS. The findings and recommendations could serve as guidelines for practitioners in the field of PMS and are expected to help government and public organisations fully benefit from the implementation of PMS.

Studying the fit between employees and their organisations and the individual and organisational outcomes of this congruence has been an interesting topic for researchers over the past decades. However, the literature does not adequately address how this fit affects other organisational attitudes – in particular organisational commitment. In this study, a theory on the mechanism by which employees’ perception of person-organisation values fit impacts their affective organisational commitment and how this is impacted by their perceptions of the psychological climate is offered. Moreover, the study contributes to the literature through applying the Latent Congruence Model (LCM) developed by Cheung (2009a). Accordingly, all the hypotheses that pertain to values congruence, psychological climate and affective organisational commitment are simultaneously tested, controlling for the measurement errors. This SEM approach could be a useful analysis tool, especially as we know that, according to the simulation study of Cheung and Lau (2008), the bias in regression coefficients due to measurement error using path analysis may exceed 16% on average. Therefore, studying congruence under the frame of SEM in turn increases the accuracy and the significance of the congruence-related studies. The study was conducted in an Egyptian medium-sized textile organisation (N = 223). The results of the study supported the hypotheses that there would be positive relationships between affective organisational commitment and both perceived person-organisation values fit and psychological climate. Moreover, perceived person-organisation values fit demonstrated a positive impact on psychological climate. Importantly, psychological climate mediated the relationship between perceived person-organisation values fit and affective organisational commitment. The implications of these findings and directions for future research are discussed.

There is limited recent evidence from the UK on the sourcing and backgrounds of Chief Executive Officers (CEOs). Practitioner views are dominant and suggest a frequent “churn” of these individuals between lucrative roles. In particular, the implications of hiring profiles, organisational career paths and demographic backgrounds have not featured in the research focus, which has perpetuated the practitioner view of CEO succession. The governance implications of CEO successions in non-domestic companies are linked to home market culture to seek validation for different approaches to compliance with governance standards. This thesis presents three linked papers on CEO succession, with the final paper evolving a governance focus from a finding of the research into the earlier papers. Chapter 2 (Paper 1) considers the implications for the future of the publicly traded corporation in terms of its leadership talent pipeline by considering the questions of the succession, age and tenure, and recruitment of CEOs. It examines a sample of the 350 largest UK publicly quoted companies and develops a research agenda focused on the succession, age, tenure and provenance of recruits to senior executive roles. The paper shows the predominance of internal recruitment, with ageing CEOs in role for over six years and close to retirement. These CEOs tend to be replaced by successors with similar age profile and recruitment characteristics, as the level of “churn” of CEOs between roles is reported as minimal. It may appear that focus on succession planning has produced results, as many CEOs are recruited from an internal talent pool and enjoy longer tenures than previous research has indicated. However, the future talent pipeline may be at risk due to a lack of development opportunities. Chapter 3 (Paper 2) examines the outcomes of talent management at the 300 largest companies in the UK, using a quantitative approach. It examines the relationship between the functional backgrounds and age demographics of CEOs and firm performance. It further links antecedent organisational performance to the internal-external CEO hiring decision. The findings show a relative predominance of general management skills in current CEOs. Replacement CEOs are usually sourced internally and long tenure is associated with improved firm performance. This holds true even with below-average antecedent firm performance, where firms are expected to address strategic shortcomings by seeking an external recruit. The article discusses the implications of the findings for succession planning and career paths. Chapter 4 (Paper 3) engages with a small sample of non-domestic companies listed on the London Stock Exchange. Such companies may seek to access capital in a more liquid market as a statement to the market of a propensity to disclosure and a willingness to protect minority shareholders. Yet, many non-domestic companies retain tightly-controlled shareholding structures and are based in emerging regions where national cultural norms differ from the UK. The paper hypothesises on likely lower levels of compliance with the principles of the UK Corporate Governance Code. It further suggests a relationship between lower levels of compliance and non-domestic companies from countries that demonstrate high power-distance and uncertainty-avoidance in the Hofstede (1980a) cultural values framework. In this exploratory approach to analysing compliance by non-domestic companies with the “comply-or-explain” governance regime in the UK, the paper develops a framework to guide future research into the contextual and cultural underpinnings of compliance monitoring and to enable regulators to further improve corporate governance codes.

No description available.

No description available.